THE Holy See and the Republic of the Philippines are set to celebrate seven decades of diplomatic ties this year.
One of the activities for this milestone is a virtual lecture: “An Overview of the 70th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the Holy See and the Philippines,” organized by the Apostolic Nunciature in Manila in collaboration with the University of Santo Tomas. It will be livestreamed via UST’s official YouTube channel and Facebook page on November 18 at 3:45 p.m.
Delivering the lecture is Fr. Nestor Impelido, SDB, who teaches Church History at the Don Bosco School of Theology, and concurrently serves as the Archivist of the Salesian of Don Bosco Archives.
This webinar will feature messages from Holy See Secretary for Relations with States Most Rev. Paul Gallagher, DD; Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro L. Locsin Jr.; Archbishop Charles John Brown, DD—the apostolic nuncio to the Philippines and dean of the Diplomatic Corps; as well as UST Rector Very Rev. Fr. Richard G. Ang, OP, PhD.
Most Rev. Julito Cortes, DD, who is the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Episcopal Commission on Church Cultural Heritage chairman and bishop of Dumaguete, as well as UST’s Secretary-General and Asst. Archivist Rev. Fr. Louie R. Coronel OP, EHL will serve as members of the panel of reactors.
As the nation with the largest Catholic population in Asia, the Philippines has maintained diplomatic relations with the Holy See in high regard. Key moments in their 70-year-long joint history include four papal visits: first by Pope Paul VI in 1970; then-pope and now canonized John Paul II in 1981 and 1995; and most recently, Pope Francis in 2015. UST, as the Pontifical and Royal University and the Catholic University of the Philippines, has hosted Eucharistic Celebrations or encounters with the youth on campus in each of the Roman pontiffs’ pastoral and state visits.
Diplomatic ties between the Holy See and the Philippines began on April 8, 1951. The 70th anniversary coincides with the 500th year of the arrival of Christianity in the Philippines—a country where more than 80 percent of its population profess the Catholic faith. Filipinos are recognized as the third-largest Catholic population in the world.